Burning Tears
by Embracing Darkness
Summary: Tears of fire eat their way down her face. What is her sin, what did she do? She doesn't know, but it doesn't matter. Tonight will the last night she has to deal with this worldly care anyway.


**Disclaimer**: I own nothing of _Twilight_, all rights belong to Stephanie Meyer.

**Title**: _Burning Tears_

**Rating**: T

**Summary**: Tears of fire eat their way down her face. What is her sin, what did she do? She doesn't know, but it doesn't matter. Tonight will the last night she has to deal with this worldly care anyway.

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_Hungry demon fires_

_Scorch my body and my soul_

_The can burn away everything of me_

_They can scatter my ashes in the wind_

_But the hatred of what has been wrought tonight_

_Will always and forever remain_

_

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_

The tears burned down my cheek.

I could feel them make their way down my face, tears made of water, sorrow, hatred, and anger. I hated the face that I was crying, but I simply could not help it.

In a last ditch attempt, I thrashed in my bonds. I accomplished nothing except a couple of splinters in the back of my hands. I banged my head against the back of the roughly hewn wooden cross. I could not believe this was happening.

_I am not a witch, and my brother is not a wizard, you bastards!_

People I had know my whole life were talking and laughing in anticipation of the spectacle to come as they gathered wood from the nearby forest and threw the logs and sticks at my feet. The miller took an armload of straw and dumped it on top of the wood. My tears fell faster now. I couldn't even pretend bravery anymore.

"Alec!" I howled out, panic overtaking me, "Alec!"

"Shhh," my brother's husky voice came from somewhere behind me, "Don't cry Janie. You are giving them what they want."

I swallowed down some of my sobs. I was scared, so scared. The priest was coming forward, his black bible in his hand. At the sight of his paunchy face, my rage and hatred broke through the fear. I gnashed my teeth defiantly at him.

_I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, how dare you accuse two innocent children of witchcraft! You just wanted our house and land, you know we have done nothing wrong!_

The priest began to read from the bible, a smirk hovering at his lips. The crowd roared in approval at each new slander of me and my brother. Words were tossed callously around. Demons, witches, sinners of hell…

And then it was time.

The baker we had brought bread from so many times before carried a torch alight with the fire from his own oven. He grinned at me, a child's grin with a treat close at hand. And then he touched the fire to the straw.

I couldn't help the terrified scream that crawled from my throat like a serpent rising from the grass. The piercing sound spurred the mob to greater heights, they laughed and cheered in frenzied excitement. The straw was consumed in an instant, but the hungry red and orange demon found the seasoned dry wood nestled at my feet. And then I was standing in a pool of lava.

Behind me, Alec could not contain his own yell of pain.

I couldn't stop shrieking. The shrieks grew louder and longer, I twisted in withered in my bondage. The hate inside me warred with my fear and pain. The tears continued to make their way down my face, but the heat had grown to a unbearable point, it evaporated the moisture the moment it left my eyes. My mouth was dry too, I choked on my own breath.

The searing pain was moving upward.

And then it suddenly stopped hurting so much, my mind went blank and I couldn't concentrate on the burning anymore.

Not enough for me to ignore it, but enough to regain my bearings.

Blinking my dry eyes, I fought to turn my head to look behind me. Alec was staring at me, a glassy look in his beautiful green eyes. Oh, God. He was trying to stopper some of my pain. Alec was forever like that, always thinking of me first. The tongues of the hateful fire illuminated his face, steadily burning the fabric of his pants away. They suddenly reached his bare sweat drenched torso, I saw his eyes bulge in surprise. The pain of my own fire returned full tilt and I wailed.

Half delirious with the overwhelming sensation, coughing up the blood from aftermath of all my screams, smoke scorching my eyes, I stared past the fire and into the mob of villagers surrounding us. They hollered in appreciation as they took in the sight of Alec and I in pain. The hatred overshadowed my overwhelmed sensations at this point, I wanted them all to HURT! I wanted them to be in PAIN! They might as well BURN!

I concentrated all this emotion at the fat miller's wife, she was standing closest to me and she was had tortured my brother on every possible occasion. For whatever reason, she stumbled and her hand landed in the very middle of my hellfire. She screamed, and was saved, but half choked laughter filled the air. My laugh. My little revenge. I could die in peace now. My only regret was that my brother could not live.

It did no good to scream, and my throat was too dry, bloody, and torn up anyway. My head thumped into the back of the cross and then drooped forward. Maybe Alec had mustered enough energy to try to act as my anesthetic again, but the fire had ceased to hurt so much. Darkness danced in front of my eyes. I think I smiled. _Ah_, sensation was leaving me.

And then I heard the screams.

At first I was just annoyed. Couldn't the crowd shut up and let me die in peace? But I realized the screams were different. They weren't enthusiastic, they were fearful. I stared through the haze my mind had formed and was shocked. Nobody stood in front of me. Not the priest, not the miller. Where were they?

I heard a sizzling sound, and the heat was being blown away a cool evening breeze. My vision was spinning in and out of focus. I felt pressure on my bound wrists, and I was flopping forward. Something caught me gently, and moved me. Pain ripped through my molten flesh. I tried to focus, I _had_ to focus. What was going on?

"Jane? Jane, can you hear me?"

Jane…who was Jane? _Oh_, she was me. Pain thudded through me, muted but there. My eyelids fluttered, and but by pupils were all but useless, they had been burned too badly. All I saw were an array of colors. White, black…red. Red eyes maybe? Eyes redder than blood. I whimpered. Only demons of hell could have such eyes. I didn't want to go to hell!

"Hush, child," crooned the demon. I realized this demon had approached me before. In another life, in another memory.

"Master," hissed a new voice, "it must be done now! We're losing her, and we're losing him! They will die."

Him? Something nagged at me. Something important….

"Alec!" my body was wracked with coughs, blood trickled down my lips, "Where is my brother, my twin? Alec!"

"Hush, child," said the demon again, "Your brother is safe."

"Ahhhh," I moaned whether from the relief of fading pain or relief of my brother's safety I did not know. But I was happy. I was swimming in a sea of night, in a sea of liquid iciness that cooled away my burns. My heartbeat slowed. I was dying, and I was happy. Life hadn't been that much fun anyway.

Hands were touching me, lifting me, cradling me. I think I was grinning as we moved. My sight was tunneled, everything seemed very far away. A tear was jostled out of my eye by the motion. I was placed down again. A muttered apology was making its way through my ear, but I ignored it. I was dying, and nothing could ruin this moment.

The tear had grown cold in my dry eye, it moved sluggishly down my cheek.

And then I felt it, that slashing pain on my neck.

_Oh, God, please, not again…._

The cold tear became warm, and then hot, and then unbearably fiery. It burned its way down my face, like acid eating through my skin. This burning tear that awoke the rest of my body, it spread through every part of me, trickled through every nerve. It was a thousand times worse than before.

My burning tear. My fire. My death.

_Oh, God, please, no more pain…_

But God had never been good at listening to me, had he? Almost on cue, the fire increased in degrees and shot through legs, previously dead to sensation. I couldn't help yelling. This fire would surely kill me. It would surely burn me to ashes and leave behind not even my bones. My heart was thumping crazily in my chest.

_Let me die, let me die, let me die…_

I was sorry I could never tell Alec goodbye in person. Why was there never enough time for a goodbye? I doubted that I would be able to get into Heaven, or whatever was out there. I would probably have to endure this agony for the rest of eternity. That was okay with me, I'd never expected anything different. But I had to die first, and dying would offer the tiniest bit of relief, at least.

The pain seemed to last forever, it was endless and timeless. It pulsed just under my skin, making me unaware of how much actual time had passed. A second? A hour? Days, or forever?

I missed a mother's embrace, I missed my cat, I missed things that could bring me comfort. I wanted someone to hold my hand, tell me I wasn't alone in this burning. Sadness crashed through me and I began to sob out in screams. I was so alone! I wanted my brother! I didn't want to die alone! But despite how hard I cried, no more tears were squeezed out. That last burning tear had truly been the last one.

The pain was getting more intense. My heart banged so hard against my ribcage I swore that it wanted to get free from me. The fire was eating away at all my worldly cares, and for that I was grateful.

Was Alec burning like me? Was he going to end up like me, a pile of ashes not even good enough to fertilize garden plots with? The sobs became more choked at this though, and the teardrop smoldered on my cheek.

The hatred was still there though. I hated the fire that had burned me, I hated that my father used to beat me and Alec, I hated my mother for abandoning us, I hated the villagers for distrusting us simply because strange things happened around us and because we were twins, I hated that stupid demon for saving me when I was so close to being at peace, but most of all I hated myself for letting those stupid tears fall. Tears meant weakness. Tears were _pathetic_.

I hated myself for crying.

And on second thought, I hated myself for screaming too. My ravaged throat only managed to let out a series of pathetic mewls at this point. I was too far gone in the pain to care though. I knew I looked horrible and pitiful to anyone who chose to help me. I hated pity most of all.

Ah…was that the fire fading? It was out of my fingers, it was dissipating from my toes. My heart beat even faster, I hacked up some more blood. The agony slowly left my ankles, my wrists.

My heart sped up.

The sensations left my arms, my thighs….

And still my heart pounded out the most violent tattoo of my life….surely the end was near now….please let it be near…

It left everywhere except for my chest…it was creeping for my frantic heart….

Please stop this toying…let me die!

But my organ still beat, I screamed with frustration…how strange, this screech didn't hurt my throat.

Oh, oh, oh! My heart! It was going too fast!

It stopped!

I gasped, air rushing down my throat without hurting. Night pounded against my eyes, I realized I had them closed. I was reluctant to open them…would I see the Devil welcoming to hell?

"Jane?" a lovely voice sounded by my ear, "Jane, child, can you hear me?"

I slowly creaked open my eyelids. My intake of breath was loud and unnaturally so. An angel was in front of me, glowing moonlight skin and abundant dark hair that tumbled past his shoulders. But his eyes…they were ruby red. Not an angel, but a demon. Ah, _him_ again.

"Shhh," shushed the Angel, "My name is Aro, you remember me. I am here to help you."

"My brother?" I paused in shock. Was that voice mine? A voice wrought of wind chimes and silver bells…was it mine? I tried speaking again, "Alec?" I couldn't help laughing. Amazing! This voice was amazing.

"He's here, he's safe."

"Can I see him?"

"No, dear one. You have to sate your thirst first."

"My thirst?" at the mention of this, I clutched my throat in confusion. She was right. It seemed like the fire had not left me entirely yet. My throat was dry and it pained me. I made a face.

Aro stood, "Bring them in."

I watched curiously, sensing movement at the door. A burly man came inside, dragging a something behind him. I let out a hiss as I heard something lush and delicious created vibrations in the air. A enticing smell wove its way over to me, and I couldn't take it anymore. I leaped across the room, mildly shocked at how quickly and how gracefully I did it, and attacked whatever it was.

That thing was a girl.

I tried to stop. I really did. But instinct had me tight in its grasp, my mouth latched over her heart and my teeth sliced through the butter like skin. Blood, fresh and hot, welled into my mouth. I moaned in rapture, sucking up the liquid like ambrosia. Oh… the ragged ache of my throat was lessening.

All too soon, there was no more blood. Annoyed, I tossed the body to one side. I'd only meant to throw her on the floor, but the corpse crashed into the wall and I heard several things snap. I stared in shock at my hands.

_My_ hands?

My skin had been a healthy tan, I'd spent a lot of time in the sun. I had lots of scars all over my arms from when the villagers tortured me. Now, my skin was made of moonbeams and white cream, it virtually glowed. No scars of mine remained. I began to shake. What was I? what had happened to me?

Arms wrapped themselves around my tiny body, Aro comforted me, "Dearest Jane, fret no longer. You are a beautiful creature of the night now. A vampire at its prime. Your skin is harder than diamond, your features have been beautified. You are now indestructible, your strength cannot be matched."

"My brother?" my voice cracked, "What of him?"

"Don't ask me, speak to him yourself." Aro moved away from me so I had a clear view of the doorway of the hovel I was in. A slight figure was being escorted over by a hulking figure…

"Brother!" I yelped. I flew into him and nearly knocked him over. I gasped as I took in his features. He was beautiful, with that sharp angular face that looked so like mine. I despaired a bit when I saw that his lovely emerald eyes had been taken over by a deep burgundy. He hugged me tightly to himself.

"Alec, come meet our savior Aro," I tugged him over to Aro. Alec bowed to Aro, and Aro caressed my brother's dark hair.

"Thank you for saving my sister," Alec's voice was a quiet whisper.

"Ah, it was nothing dear boy. I couldn't let two such talented children perish, could I?"

I beamed, happy to be complimented instead of hated for once. My desire to die had completely vanished. I was beautiful, strong, lethal. All would cower before me! I would never be threatened again!

Alec smiled indulgently at me, "You still thirsty, sister?"

My throat flared at his suggestion, and I punched him playfully, "Thanks a lot!"

"Hey, not my fault you're such a greedy pig," Alec laughed at my sullen expression, "Come, Felix (he jerked his head toward the bulky man that had showed him in) told me there are some people we would like to meet."

Curious, I allowed him to lead me out the door and into another hut. I grinned as I realized the decimation that had been wrought on the village. Huts had been destroyed, corpses littered the blood soaked ground, and crops had been burned. Alec pushed me into the mayor's fine manor, and I let out a gasp as I recognized the people grouped in there.

The miller and his wife, the rich daughter of the mayor, the priest, the baker, and the tanner. A deep rumbling sound grated my throat, I realized I was growling.

"They saved these beings for us," Alec smiled, his face lit up like an angel of destruction, "These pathetic humans are ours to torture, ours to maim."

"Did Aro command this?" my own smile widened.

"Yes, Jane. Come, let's not keep our guests waiting any longer, shall we? The poor miller hasn't had any food for three days, he must be starved, his fat gullet is shrunken. Jane, do the honors please."

The man's terrified face was cooling water to a burn, it soothed me and comforted me. I thought of all the despicable things this man had attempted to do to my brother and I, and hatred like no other consumed my mind. The emotion grew too great to contain, it poured out of me in a single deadly spear and penetrated the miller.

The miller instantly began to scream and howl as though wrapped in the hellfire of Hades. I began to laugh. Oh, but this was amazing! I had not even touched him, but here was the fat man, rolling on the floor like pig in the mud! He deserved this, he deserved to burn that that burning tear that had trailed down my cheek a lifetime ago.

I did not know what the future wrought, but it had to be amazing. Alec came over and rested his chin on my shoulder as I burned the miller. Deep comfort worked its way through me and I ran a hand through his hair. Yes, nothing could destroy us now. Nothing could make me cry burning tears ever again. Nothing.

_Nothing at all._

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**This is my take on Jane and Alec's transit into the life of the Volturi. It's a bit hard to write for them, they are such abstract characters. But, how I love them!**

**To all my readers of my old stories, I'm back! I will soon be updating my old stories, I promise. I'm sorry I was gone for so long, I just needed a break.**

**Please leave some feedback.**


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